My post set off some pretty vigorous debate among editors at Wikipedia.

One of the editors, who did not get his way, said my blog post should be ignored because Legal Insurrection “looks like a fairly standard-issue wingnut blog. Why should anyone take it seriously?”

A “standard-issue wingut blog”? I beg to differ. According to Elizabeth Warren’s campaign spokeswoman, we are full-fledged “right wing extremists” here for calling her out on the Cherokee issue. Give us some credit!

Anyway, this whole incident has been an eye-opener as to what goes on behind the scenes at Wikipedia. The good news is that the open nature of Wikipedia sorta, kinda worked here.

The attention of this blog caused significant changes to be made, including restoring a subsection devoted to the Cherokee issue (now called “Cherokee self-identification” instead of “Cherokee self-identification controversy”). Prior versions were much more detailed, and explored Warren’s obfuscations.

Does Wikipedia now give the full story of how Warren used the false claim to be Cherokee in a very strategic manner in her professional career and how she did not come clean during the campaign? No, but at least it does provide some more detail and links to sources which do tell more of the story. I’d like to see further improvement of the section.

Cherokee self-identification

In April 2012, the Boston Herald reported that in the 1990s Harvard Law School had, in response to criticisms about the lack of faculty diversity, publicized Warren’s law directory entries from 1986 to 1995, which listed her background as Native American ancestry.[52][53][54] Warren said she identified as a minority in the law directory listing (of the 1980s and 1990s) in hopes of being invited to events to meet people of similar background.[55][56] Harvard Law professor Charles Fried, who had served as Solicitor General in the Reagan administration[57] and sat on the appointing committee that recommended Warren for hire in 1995, said that her heritage was never mentioned and played no role in the appointments process.[52]

The Brown campaign called on Warren to “come clean about her motivations for making these claims and explain the contradictions between her rhetoric and the record”. Warren’s campaign responded that she was proud of her heritage and denied any wrongdoing.[58] Warren’s claim angered many Cherokees, who questioned why she did not continue to list herself in directories or reach out to other Indians if she truly wanted to meet people like her.[59] A group of Cherokee women sought to meet with Warren but were unsuccessful; one member of the group from Warren’s home state of Oklahoma said her claim was “shameful and extremely disrespectful not just to Cherokees but to all tribes”.[60] A group of Cherokees started a website saying, “You claim to be Cherokee. You forget, it isn’t who you claim, but instead, who claims you. We don’t claim you!”[61] In response, a Warren spokesperson emailed Politico a recycled statement that had been circulating for days.[61]

Warren said she had not received any preferential treatment due to her claimed Native American heritage, and stated, “Every single person who has been involved in hiring me has issued a statement to that effect.”[62]

The New England Historical Genealogical Society initially announced in May 2012 that they had found evidence for Warren’s claims, but later recanted, saying, “We have no proof that Elizabeth Warren’s great-great-great-grandmother O.C. Sarah Smith either is or is not of Cherokee descent.”[63]

A Washington Post fact check article reviewed some of the claims and concluded that her claims to be Cherokee were not adequately documented, although noted this did not preclude the possibility of “traces of Native American heritage”.[64]

We will continue to watch the page to make sure there is no further ethnic cleansing.

One of the reasons we are starting (soon!) a website devoted to documenting Elizabeth Warren’s history is that the truth about a powerful politican still matters. All of it.

The scary thing is that Prof J is careful not to speculate about Warren’s “Cherokee” history. It is 100% fact driven. But that idiot says to disregard it not because any of the facts are in dispute, but because he doesn’t like Prof J’s politics on other issues. Pretty telling.

He also ridiculed a recent post about Agenda 21. I haven’t followed that issue much at all, but since he says paying attention to it is nutty, then I’m pretty sure that means I need to be much more informed about it than I am.

First — congratulations for getting the Cherokee controversy re-introduced!

I was about to attempt adding Pow Wow Chow Cookbook to Warren’s Wiki Publication section noting her contributions — “Cold Omelets with Crabmeat” and “Crab with Mayonnaise Dressing” — until I recalled that she’d plagiarized the recipes….

On October 7, 1861, the Cherokee Nation concluded a treaty with the Confederacy. Did Senator Warren’s claimed Cherokee ancestors fight with the Confederacy? Many Cherokees did. Did her ancestors own slaves? Many Cherokees did. It is time we learned the full story of Senator Warren’s ancestry.

Dear Professor Jacobson: Can you get me into Cornell Law School as a full blooded Indian? Because now that I know there is no repercussions for lying I am putting it on all new applications for everything.